Scarlet

The planning session ends up taking nearly four hours, since we continuously move to the arena to try out each plan we come up with. Whether that involves Emily and I debuffing and stacking up damage on the enemies with our ranged skills with Michael covering healing and support from his summons and Denise going in as the main attacker, myself and Denise going in for the attack with Emily debuffing and stacking up damage and Michael healing and bringing support with his summons, or even Emily working on distracting the enemies with her speed and what I have to admit are annoying attacks while the rest of us go all out in attacking.

I personally would’ve preferred some more plans of attack, but in the end, we’re all limited in our total number of skills at the moment, considering how new we are to being Guardians. And not to mention that our team is only temporary.

“See you again tomorrow?” Denise says as I begin heading for the door. And I wave my hand back with a brief, “Yep,” before walking through the door and letting it shut behind me. Then I head towards the closest exit to the building, because I really feel like moongazing right now.

I still wonder if that particular habit of mine is because I’m a blood lycan?

Either way, it’s very relaxing.

I’m glad that we ended up deciding on the plan of me and Denise being the frontline attackers with Emily debuffing and stacking damage and Michael healing and supporting rather than the first one. Mostly because it means more EXP for me. After all, it’ll mean Denise and I are helping the most in the kills. Which also means I’ll be able to go solo again sooner.

It makes sense that they’d have me on the frontline in battle though, seeing as I have the best offensive skills of the group. Even if they don’t know that some of my success in fighting with the instructor guy was purely because of Predator IV.

I stretch my arms over my head right before reaching one of the exits which has a terminal scan next to it. After I finish stretching, I reach my hand down and insert some mana into the thing while also letting it scan my handprint before the door opens, letting me out. And as soon as I step outside, I head straight onto the roof and over to my little place atop a tower that I found on the first night here.

I let out a sigh and collapse on the ground, just staring up at the full moon in the sky. One that I’m quite grateful for is always there, no matter what.

No one’s really sure what happened to the moon after the Demonic Assaults began. Just that it has always been full no matter what ever since.

The other change the Demonic Assaults brought to the world didn’t have such superfluous effects though. After all, it being impossible to leave or enter the planet’s atmosphere whenever a Demonic Assault is currently ongoing kind of made it so humanity couldn’t just ditch Earth to go somewhere else when our magi-tech was theoretically capable of space travel.

“Not that anyone could test it,” I mutter before finding Tar appearing above me to promptly land on my chest. “You’re rather quiet.”

Tar’s voice responds in my head instead of out loud despite him being here in person, “I’ve been trying to figure out a better way for you to retain your human genes intact.”

My eyebrows climb at that statement.

Really? Thank you.

I look back up at the moon again.

In all honesty, the only thing I care about in regard to becoming a full blooded demon is how they will feel about it. Allen, Cynthia, Belle, Arthur, the other orphans, and a few other friends I made back in Rothwell. The idea of losing my human genes themselves doesn’t actually bother me for some reason.

“That’s probably because of your superior blood lycan genes,” Tar says offhandedly, sounding slightly distracted. “Blood lycans are the strongest demon of pride, so it’d make sense for their instincts to be very prideful in their own race.”

Huh. That… kind of does make sense.

Certainly explains why I’m not cracked up over this like other people normally would be. And a part of me absolutely despises the idea of staying stagnant in my level just to remain half human.

“That wouldn’t work anyways, since then you’d end up aging, and my father would try to force you into leveling up somehow,” Tar says something that has my head shooting up to look at him without even seeming to realize what he said, him being so distracted right now. “Because ‘it’d be a disgrace for a prince to be contracted to a forever Class I’.”

I gape at the tanuki as he continues staring ahead, his eyes flickering from left to right as if reading something.

The hell?

He finally turns his gaze to me and asks, “What?”

You just drop that bomb on me and simply ask ‘What?’

The tanuki looks genuinely confused for a moment before he mutters, “Oh.”

Yeah. Oh.

“Well, I did say that I’d like to be more open with you in the future,” he says, somehow blowing that all off and returning to whatever he was staring at. “Guess that future is now.”

I snort.

Yeah. Guess so.

And in hindsight, it would make sense that a king wouldn’t want an embarrassment as a prince. But what would he be able to do? You fae aren’t very strong in the mortal plane, right?

“Doesn’t mean he can’t bribe another Guardian or a demon with an achievement or two to move against you,” Tar says, his eyes still flickering. “Although he wouldn’t kill you. Not when I wouldn’t be able to form another contract for a very long time after your death. Long enough that it could become a problem for my life span.”

Oh. Well, that’s a relief at least. He would just push me into leveling.

In all honesty? I don’t think I would be able to stop leveling even if I wanted to. Not with how our society is, what with the government being openly against Guardians who don’t help society by fighting. It’s how the Guardians living in Tier 3 cities end up there after all. And even then, they’re still forced to fight every couple months when a Demonic Assault does actually happen.

And I don’t think my pride would let me stop anyways.

“I know,” Tar mutters, “that’s why I’ve been working with his majesty to find a way around you becoming fully demon. Or at least trying to find a way to hide it from the humans and demons if you do become a full blooded blood lycan.”

I blink in surprise.

You’ve been working with the king?

“Yes.”

As we’ve been talking?

“Yes.”

About the king and his likely plans to entrap me into leveling?

“Ye- oh.”

Yep. He’s been quite distracted.

“Well, he can’t hear us anyways,” he blows it off a moment later.

I can’t help but chuckle. Then I let out a sigh.

Such a pain this world is. But I guess the saying ‘With power comes responsibility’ has some applications to it, right?

Although in this case it’s ‘With power comes complications’.

Tar just continues whatever he’s doing, so I focus on the moon, just letting its soothing light, well, soothe me.